“Now that your precious old woman’s gone, I guess you’ve got no one left to rely on. Well, it makes sense you’d cling to Michael like he’s your last lifeline.”
She suddenly remembered something, laughing as she brought her phone screen up to my face.
“Oh right, remember the day you begged Michael to fly a helicopter to take you to the hospital to see your grandma one last time?”
“Wanna know why he didn’t take you?”
“Because he had promised to take me to the beach to watch the sunset. Look, the photo of us kissing on my phone screen was taken during that moment.”
Unable to endure it any longer, I slapped the phone out of her hand and grabbed her by the throat.
The black bottle in her hand slipped and fell.
The sharp, acrid stench of gasoline instantly filled the air.
In chaos, Daniela hastily lit the gasoline on the floor.
Thick smoke filled the air, and flames erupted violently.
Having just been discharged from the hospital, I quickly succumbed to the fumes, my body growing weak as I collapsed to the ground.
Through the haze, I heard Michael's voice—
“Ashlyn!”
Then came the sounds of servants trying to stop him.
“Sir, it’s too dangerous! Please wait for the fire extinguishers—”
“Move! Ashlyn is still inside!”
In the end, he ignored their warnings and rushed into the flames.
What he didn’t expect… was to find Daniela inside too.
“Michael... help...”
She hadn’t even finished her sentence before he scooped her up in his arms—never once glancing at me.
Without hesitation, he turned and walked away.
—
Thirty minutes later. After calming Daniela down, he searched the entire house, but I was nowhere to be found.
Late that night, at the airport.
After mailing a package, I boarded a flight to the UK, coughing as I made my way down the aisle.
Just before the plane took off, my phone buzzed with a text from Michael.
[I don’t have time to play hide-and-seek with you.]
[Daniela has a prenatal check-up tomorrow at 10 a.m. Come with her, and get your lungs checked too.]
I didn’t reply. Instead, I removed the SIM card and powered off my phone.
'Michael—from this day forward, you and I are done. We will never see each other again.'
—
The next day, at the hospital—
“Michael, is our baby okay?”
Meeting Daniela’s pitiful, anxious eyes, Michael immediately pulled her into his arms, speaking to her in a soft, reassuring voice.